Japanese Construction

1. The Japanese Presence in the United States Today.- Why Are They Here and What Are They Doing?.- Reluctance to Go It Alone.- Differing Approaches by Other Japanese Companies.- The Other Japanese Real Estate Investors.- A Changing Philosophy?.- Investments in the Residential Market.- The Investment Houses and Banks.- Total Japanese Investments in the U.S..- U.S. Construction Subsidiaries.- The Japanese Approach.- The Trading Companies.- Putting Things in Perspective.- 2. The Construction Industry in Japan.- A Look at the Country.- The History of Construction in Japan.- Public versus Private Projects.- Tunnel Work.- Urban Development.- Other Government Roles That Affect Construction.- Hi-Tech and Industrial Park Development.- The Industrial Relocation Promotion Law.- Technopolis.- The Third Sector Approach.- Hotel Construction in Japan.- Housing in Japan.- Variation of the Two Family House Theme.- Land Costs.- Kami Megura.- Land Fever.- Profiling the Japanese Construction Company.- Profits—Japanese Versus American.- The Banking Connection.- The Ministry of Construction.- Laws Relating to Construction in Japan.- The Licensing System for Japanese Contractors.- The Training of Construction Workers.- Conclusions.- 3. The Functioning Construction Company.- The Japanese Corporate Environment.- Differences in Corporate Environment—Physical and Philosophical.- Lifetime Employment.- The Japanese Executive.- Executive Salaries and Amenities.- The Corporate Chain of Command.- Corporate Organizational Structure.- A Close Look at Ohbayashi Corporation.- What Is It Like to Work for a Company Like Ohbayashi?.- Kajima—A $7.6 Billion Giant.- Government Benefits and the Construction Company Employee.- The Role of the Subcontractor in the Construction Process.- Nihon Johnson Control.- Corporate Planning in the Construction Industry.- 4. Marketing-Domestically and Overseas.- Research and Development as a Marketing Tool.- Joint Ventures—A Valuable Marketing Concept.- The Marketing Link Between Government and Industry.- The Asahan Project—A Classic Case of Creating a Project.- The Overseas Construction Association of Japan.- The Japanese and the European Market.- Was the U.S. Market Simply a Laboratory?.- Japanese Contractors on the European Scene.- Japanese Investments in EC Countries.- The Battle of Britain.- Kumagai Gumi and the Financial Approach.- Kajima Corporation and Its Special Marketing Tool.- How Long Term Client Relationships Become Marketing Tools.- 5. Estimating, Bidding, Cost and Quality Control.- The Estimating Process.- A Case Study of an Excavation Estimate.- The Role of the Project Manager in the Estimating Process.- Estimating Department Personnel.- An Unusual Estimating Tool—The Tower Crane.- Cost Information Manuals.- Cost Reporting.- Bidding Projects in Japan.- The U.S. Postal Service and its Selected Bidders List Program.- Simplification of the Selected Bidders List Program.- The Qualified Bidder’s Application.- Low Bid Is Not Always the Successful Bid.- The Tokyo Municipal Government.- TMG and Design Consultant Selection.- Quality Control—A Driving Force in the Construction Industry.- 6. The Contract Documents.- The Japanese Concept of Contracts.- History of Japanese Contractual Agreements.- Japan’s Legal System.- The Role of Personal Relationships in Agreements.- The Lawyer in Japan.- The Construction Contract Perception.- The Concept of Change Orders.- The Construction Contract.- Settling Disputes in Japan.- 7. The Construction Process.- The Japanese Construction Employee.- Managerial and Professional Staff Salaries.- Safety and Construction.- The Unsafe Workplace.- Safety on the Job Site.- Ohbayashi’s Safety Schedule.- Construction Safety Off the Site.- Night Time Safety Practices.- Construction Equipment Safety.- The Field Organization on the Construction Site.- A Day on the Jobsite with Ohbayashi.- A Day on a Mitsui Bridge Project.- 8. Unionism in Japan and the Construction Unions.- The History of Unions in Japan.- The Enterprise Union.- The Role of Unions.- Kensetsu-Roren.- The Spring Offensive.- National Federations of Construction Unions—Zenkensoren.- The Sewayaku.- Education, Training and Technology-All Part of the Union’s Concern.- The Council of Japan Construction Unions.- A Closer Look at Large Construction Company Enterprise Unions.- 9. Movers and Shakers-Robots and Seismics.- Robots.- Earthquake Prone Japan.- 10. Construction Techniques.- New Ideas for Old Urban Problems.- New Construction-Related Products.- A New Frameless Glazing System.- A New Method of Foundation Wall Construction.- The Nakagin Capsule Mansion—A Unique Apartment Building.- A Penchant for Prefabrication.- 11. Research and Development.- R&D and the Japanese Construction Industry.- U.S. Technology—Japanese Opportunities.- Government Research at the Federal Level.- Private Construction Research and Development Activity.- CFRC—Carbon Fiber Reinforced Concrete.- Where is Japanese Construction R&D Heading?.- 12. Competing with the Japanese.- The Impact of Japanese Construction on the U.S. Market.- We Have Met the Enemy and He is Us.- The Business Roundtable.- The Construction Industry Cost Effectiveness Report—CICE.- Management or Lack Thereof.- Safety.- Scheduling.- Training.- Motivation.- Labor and the Cost of Restrictive Work Practices.- Inefficient Local Labor Practices.- The Productivity Issue.- Lilco.- The Need to Address the Issue of Quality.- The Manual of Professional Practice for Quality.- The Dunn Construction Company QC Program.- Construction Research and Development in the U.S..- The Construction Industry Institute.- The Construction Research Center.- The Construction Productivity Advancement Research Program.- The Need for Centralization.- The Construction Research Institute of America.- Competing with the Japanese in Japan.- Japan Opens Its Construction Market—Kansai, K-1, K-2, K-3.- The New K-1 Rules.- Recent Development in U.S.-Japan Talks.- The Opening of the Japanese Market to American Design Firms.- What Does the Future Hold?.- Harley Davidson—A Story for Not Only Motorcycle Buffs.